Saturday, October 27, 2007

sheep and wool


last weekend i attended the 2007 New York State Sheep & Wool Festival. phylleri needed a little help since she had a double booth where she sold her lovely hand-dyed yarn and roving, as well as two angora goat kids to show, a doe named tilly and a buck named tommy.




phylleri showed tilly herself, but when it came time for the buck kid's class, she was busy at her booth and told me to go ahead and get tommy ready, and if she wasn't there in time to take him into the ring. so tommy and i were on our own, and basically all i did was manage to get him out of his pen, into the show ring, and back into his pen successfully, but somewhere in there the judge seemed to think lil' tommy was a pretty fine specimen of angora goathood, and awarded him the second place ribbon!


of course there were also lots of sheep...




... bunnies, llamas and alpacas, and a very entertaining man who drove a team of draft horses around the grounds, one foot on each bare back. he reminded me of this guy, who i'd forgotten all about!
you can read more about the festival (and see another photo of phylleri and tilly!) in the NY Times article.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

ladies, mark your calendars!


i got in! this will be the 3rd year of the BUST Holiday Craftacular, and the third year hodge podge will be participating! so save the date of saturday, december 8 as you won't want to miss this one... did i mention it's in MANHATTAN this year? i mean, i'm not complaining that both of the major nyc craft fairs have so far taken place in greenpoint/williamsburg, just a few blocks from my apartment, but let's face it: it's not exactly a central location! but the Metropolitan Pavilion, now that's what i call central! hope to see you there...

the sky fell

last week i had a mini catastrophe; i opened the door to my bathroom and this is what i saw:


all i can say is, thank goodness i wasn't sitting on the toilet when it happened! there were chunks of cement, rocks, wet sand and heavy sodden drywall; it definitely could have knocked me out. apparently a slow drip upstairs just soaked the entire ceiling until it was so heavy it had to come down. this was actually the third time in my life that a ceiling has fallen in my home, and the first two times i WAS in the room when it happened! i feel like chicken little! fortunately my super patched the hole back up the next morning and removed all the debris from my sink drain... but i still haven't moved everything back in yet!

p.s. that's my hand-crocheted wall-to-wall carpet under the rubble. of course, my bathroom floor is only about 3' x 3' so it didn't take long to make!

Monday, October 22, 2007

new etsy classes!

i've got 2 new classes coming up this week at the good ol' etsy labs! the crochet class begins monday 10/29, for 4 weeks from 6-8pm. it's just the beginning of high season for the yarn-y crafts, so now's a great time to learn! it's not too late to make your gifts this holiday season...

and a brand new beginner sewing class will begin this sunday, 10/28 for 3 weeks from noon-2pm. in this class you'll learn how to work a sewing machine and design your own tote bag, while making use of the sunny and spacious sewing studio at the labs.


Introduction to Crochet Technique.

Date: 4 week series held on Mondays in Oct/Nov beginning 10/29, 11/5, 11/12, and 11/19
Time: 6PM-8PM
Location: Etsy Labs, 325 Gold Street 6th Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201.

Description:
In this class you will learn all the basics of crochet (chain, single, double and triple crochet stitches) and how to use them to whip up scarves, hats, amigurumi and infinite other possibilities! We will learn shaping and circular crochet, as well as stitch patterns like meshes, scallops and bobbles. You'll begin a scarf in the first class and continue on to either a hat or shawl by the end of the session. Happy hooking! Supplies provided.

There are only 8 spaces available in total so sign up quickly!

Class fee is $90.00.
To register, go here.



Beginner Sewing Class: design your own tote!

Date: 3 week Sunday Series: 10/28, 11/4, and 11/11 2007
Time: 12:00pm-2pm
Location: Etsy Labs, 325 Gold Street 6th Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201.

Description:
If you've been wanting to learn to sew, this introductory class is for you! You will learn how to operate a sewing machine and design and complete your own tote bag. We will cover various techniques such as pockets, straps, lining and trims, and you can choose which to incorporate into your first project. With these skills, you'll soon be stitching up whatever your heart desires...

Students are required to bring the following materials with them to the class:
* 1 yard of fabric for tote
* thread to match

*** optional: 1 yard of lining fabric, scraps of contrast fabric or trims for decoration, pockets and/or straps
basic sewing kit: scissors, pins, pincushion, seam ripper, tape measure, tailor's chalk

There are only 8 spaces available in total so sign up quickly! You must sign up 24 hours in advance of class to be registered.

Class fee is $120.00.
To register, go here.

check out all of the classes at the labs in their etsy shop!
and read about what's happening (fun events, parties, and tutorials) here, and don't forget to check out The Storque, their new online newspaper!

Thursday, October 18, 2007

the sky smiled


about 2 weeks ago, i took a little weekend trip up to the fingerlakes. on the way up, a little past binghamton we hit some crazy stormy weather, black sky, rain coming down in sheets, and then... hands-down the best rainbow i have ever seen in my life. it was a full arc, and a DOUBLE (though the second one doesn't show up in the pics). and the colors were unbelievably intense, but also didn't photograph well. still, i am happy to have this souvenir, and to share it with you!

Monday, October 08, 2007

'all-day tote' class @ brooklyn general


we've developed a new class at brooklyn general, for 'advanced beginners', after finding that the true intermediate project (like the BBW tunic) could be a bit too challenging for someone who has only been sewing for 4 weeks and made one wrap skirt. so i'm happy to announce Sewing 102! we'll make the cute tote bag pictured above (at right in both pics), perfect for those who are still getting their 'sew-legs' (har!) or who haven't sewn in years and want a refresher course...

**please note: one session begins tomorrow evening (10/9) and another wednesday morning (10/10) so act fast!

Sewing 102: All-Day Tote $150
Four 2-hour classes

Step up your stitching skills with this very practical tote bag from Lotta Jansdotter's book Simple Sewing. You'll learn how to do pockets, linings, topstitching and straps and become much more confident with your sewing.

Materials:
1 yard medium- to heavy-weight fabric for bag
1 yard medium-weight fabric for lining
1/2 yard of twill tape (1" wide)
thread to match
optional: quick-release metal key clip
basic sewing supplies (scissors, pins, pincushion, ruler or tape measure, tailor's chalk, seam ripper)

Session A: Tues 6:30 to 8:30 pm, 10/9, 16, 23, 30
Session B: Wed 11 am to 1 pm, 10/10, 17, 24, 31

To register, please call the shop at 718–237–7753 (leave a message!). please don't register by e-mail this week, as kaitlyn is on vacation.

Sunday, October 07, 2007

pets on parade

it was one of my favorite days of the year today: the Blessing of the Beasts at St. John the Divine. where else can you see hermit crabs riding in strollers and prairie dogs tucked into purses? i went with my friends kim and heidi and we didn't get in for the service, so we got coffee and strudel from the hungarian pastry shop and ate in the park, then joined the festival which is essentially a show-and-tell of the pets of NYC!
gertie made a new friend, named TiTi. he's a little hottie!



some pets come in carrying cases (those are the aforementioned hermit crabs on the left)...

we saw three of the peacocks that live at st. john's, two blue/green ones and an albino one. if you click on the pic on the right, you'll be able to see them better...


the cockatoo was dyed pink (with Kool Aid) for a commercial. and the golden eagle was one of the rescued birds brought by the raptor project, whose owls i took pics of last year.

the llama really likes to kiss the ladies; he got heidi smack on the lips!

dogs outnumbered all the other pets by far...


...but the most exotic pets we saw, and hands-down our faves, were this pair of prairie dogs!

of course, gertie got blessed.


kimmy bonded with this dwarf bunny; he was eating carrots from her hand. and i loved how these lovebirds rode around on their friend's shoulder as he wandered all over the grounds!